The city will come under a heavy security cover from February 20 to March 5, as two major events of the Indian Navy- the Presidential Fleet Review (PFR) and Milan-2022, will be held during this period.
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Over 5,000 security personnel are being deployed, especially to handle the PFR on February 21 and the city parade of Milan, which is scheduled for February 27, on Beach Road.
About 3,500 personnel are being brought from other districts and will comprise men from various wings such as the Civil Police, Armed Reserve and anti-terrorists forces such as the AP Special Police, the Greyhounds and the Octopus. This apart, central security forces such as the NSG (National Security Guards), ITBP and the Marine Commandos (Marcos) of the Navy, will also be part of the security cover.
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High-level delegation
While President Ram Nath Kovind, who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces, will attend the PFR, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, some Ministers in the State Cabinet, senior bureaucrats and high-ranking officers from the three wings of the armed forces will also be in attendance.
For Milan, apart from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, it is expected that External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, senior bureaucrats and 150 high-ranking officers from the participating countries will be present.
“We cannot leave any stone unturned in terms of security, as it is big event not only for the Indian Navy, but also for the city, State and the country,” Commissioner of Police Manish Kumar Sinha said.
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As per conservative estimates, two lakh people are expected to throng the Beach Road stretch from Naval Coastal Battery to The Park Hotel, where the city parade will be held. An operations demo is on the cards, as part of Milan, on the evening of February 27.
During IFR, managing crowd and traffic, both before and after the event, was the biggest challenge and we are working on these aspects, the Commissioner said.
Committees formed
Five committees have been formed to handle various aspects such as law and order, traffic, convoy and security, intelligence gathering and communication.
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It is learnt that at least two DIG-rank officers and three SPs are being brought from other districts to oversee both events. This apart, a number of inspectors, sub-inspectors and DSP-rank officers from other districts will also be roped in.
It is learnt that there will be at least nine to 10 enclosures to accommodate close to 5,000 guests, while 32 enclosures are being planned for the general public.
The public enclosures will be set up on the beach area and each enclosure will be barricaded. Around 14 to 16 routes have been finalised to allow the public into the event area from NCB to YMCA. This apart, arrangements are being made to install big LED screens on Beach Road and near the enclosures, to enable people to view the proceedings.
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About 400 CCTV cameras are being installed along the VVIP route and on the Beach Road, and the entire network will be hooked to the main command control centre, which will be led by at least two ACP-rank officers.
Around 15 to 18 Quick Reaction Teams (QRTs) with 10 men in each team and 14 to 15 SWAT teams with eight men in each, will be deployed during the event days. A 400+ strong bomb disposal team and over 450 armed policemen, armed with 25 sniffer dogs, are being deployed.
All access points will be manned by armed police and people have to pass through door frame metal detectors and hand-held metal detectors. Over 500 communication sets with 400 handheld VHF sets are being pressed into service..